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| Lair of Motrax |
| Avernum 2 | Lair of Motrax | Spiders/Formello |
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List of all towns and shops in Avernum
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| Lair of Motrax |
Motrax is getting old even for a dragon. The empire recently attacked him thereby killing most of his guard and severely wounding the dragon himself. A group of mages has now taken up residence in the western parts of his lair. They want to get as much information out of the dragon as they can before he dies and are continually bombarding Motrax with questions. You can get into their quarters only if you have Magi clearance.
| Person | Function | Items, Quests and Notes | Rating |
| Ko | Captain | He is the commander of the remnant of the human guard. Since his troop was decimated by the Empire attack, the mages have brought golems to protect Mortax. Ko moans about a lizard infestation but does not give you a reward for killing them. He will however give you a quest to eliminate some brigands operating to the NW of the Lair of Motrax (Reward: he gives you nothing but you gain 10 xp and 1 reputation). | Quest |
| Platte | Mage | He refuses to give you any information about the three mages who are questioning Motrax. | |
| Marion | Sage | She is rather upset that she is no longer allowed to visit her old friend Motrax and asks you to give him her regards if you should speak to him. | |
| Motrax | Dragon | He is in a bad way. You can talk to him for a long time but he has no useful information. | |
| Ostoth | Mage | Tells you he is questioning Motrax and that he has lost a tablet which he lent to the dragon. Later (when you are gathering information about the Crystal Souls) he will tell you that the coordinates for Angierach are hidden in the dresser in his room in the tower of Magi (the key to which is in one of the rooms to the south). [Magi clearance is needed] | |
| Enla | Mage | Tells you that "a very powerfull Vahnatai Mage" (Rentar Ihrno?) knows how to make Quickfire. She will also ask you to bring her a black drake fang (reward 25 xp, 1 reputation and a strength Bracelet). [Magi clearance is needed] | Quest |
| Linda | Mage | Linda is more or less a prisoner here. She rants on about demons, particularly Adze-Haakai. and will tell you about a special sceptre. (Does she mean the Onyx Sceptre or the Blessed Athmame?) [Magi clearance is needed] |
It is always a good idea to talk to everybody. The following notes give hints on hidden rooms, traps and puzzles.
In the extreme west of of the entrance cave is a hidden passage in the north wall leading north and east back to the central area. There are quite a few giant lizards (not to diffucult) and a fire lizard (tough for a low level party). In their nests are a few salable items.
To the east of Motrax's throne are his sleeping quarters where you can learn Mass Healing L3 once Ostoth has told you about the tablet he lent to Motrax. In the eastern wall is a secret passage with two traps. If you try to disable these traps and fail you will make the town angry because the passage leads to Motrax's treasure trove.
You can however get past the traps without setting them off by using the "combat mode trick": approach the trap with your party in as straight a line as possible, enter combat mode and then leave it. The party should move forward a few spaces. Repeatedly enter combat mode and leave it until the whole party is well past the trap. Repeat this proceedure to get past the second trap. You still have to get past a basilisk. So you need a crystal shield or charm or a lot of luck. When you have robbed Motrax of his treasure (which besides lots of gold and jewels also includes Gauntlets of Might, a Warrior's Bracelet and a Ring of Great Health) you can row back to his sleeping quarters in the boat you found thereby avoiding the traps and no one is the wiser.
The secret passage leading from the ledge in the SE to the treasure chamber contains nothing but another basilisk.
Once you have got Magi Clearance you can enter the Mage's quarters in the west. Here you can talk to Ostoth, Enla and Linda. In the northeast of Linda's quarters is a secret passage to a tome which teaches Safe Travel level 3. (There is however a magical barrier in front of the tome.)
It is a bit difficult to get information out of Ostoth. You can look in the sleepig quarters to the south of his library. Whether he has told you about the teleporter code or not you can find the feldspar key which you will need later in his room. In the bedroom on the other side of the corridor (i.e. in the SE of the block) there is a hidden cubby hole with a chest containing some magical scrolls which you could steal. The bedroom to the NW is empty. The crates and barrels in the storeroom to the NE contain some useful items (silver bar, herbs, elixir usw.), but are guarded by a golem. So you will have to push the crates out of the room and close the doors before you can take the items.
If you give Elna a black drake fang she will reward you with 25 xp, 1 rep and a strength bracelet
There is no inn or resting room here.
